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علاج شوبنهاور

Irvin D. Yalom,

خالد الجبيلي (Translator)

4.24 · Rating details · 16,869 ratings · 1,182 reviews

كل نفس نأخذه يدرأ عنا الموت الذي يحيق بنا طوال الوقت... وفي النهاية، لا بد أن ينتصر الموت، لأنه أصبح قدرنا منذ ولادتنا، ويتلاعب بفريسته لفترة قصيرة جداً قبل أن يبتلعها، لكننا نواصل حياتنا باهتمام كبير وببؤس شديد بقدر ما نستطيع، تماماً كما ننفخ فقاعة صابون حتى تصبح أطول وأضخم ما يمكنها، مع أننا واثقون تمام الثقة بأنها ستنفجر في نهاية المطاف.

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Paperback, 430 pages

Published July 2018 by منشورات الجمل (first published June 4th 2000)

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Feb 26, 2014 Ahmad Sharabiani rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: united-states, 21th-century, psychology, fiction, literature, novels

The Schopenhauer cure : a novel, 1st ed, c2005, Irvin D. Yalo

Julius Hertzfeld is a distinguished psychotherapist when a sudden confrontation with his own mortality forces him to re-examine his life and work. Has he really made an enduring difference to the lives of his patients? And what about those he's failed Ð what has happened to them?

His attempt to make sense of the past places him on a collision course with former patient Philip Slate a handsome but arrogant and misanthropic sex addict wh ...more

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Nov 14, 2013 Glenn Russell rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

“Live right, he reminded himself, and have faith that good things will flow from you even if you never learn of them.”
― Irvin D. Yalom, The Schopenhauer Cure

This book receives a five star rating not because the author is on the level with Vladimir Nabokov or Leo Tolstoy, but because this novel is a real page-turner and teaches as great deal about two topics: the dynamics of group psychotherapy and the illustrious nineteenth century philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer. Highly recommended! Take this book with you when you travel by airplane or train and your six hour trip will seem like forty-five minutes - The Schopenhauer Cure is that riveting.

The novel opens with the main character, a seasoned sixty-five year old psychotherapist and leader of group therapy, Julius Hertzfeld, having been diagnosed with cancer and given a year of good health. So what to do with a year to live? Julius reviews his career as a therapist and asks himself if he had cured people or at least provided a degree of help. This self-examination leads Julius to unearth an old file going back twenty years of one patient who spent three years of therapy with him but the patient terminated treatment since what Julius had to offer was not helping. Julius calls the patient, Philip Slate by name, and requests a meeting for the purposes of research.

Turns out, Philip is a counselor himself as well as being a philosophy instructor at a local college. But Philip needs certification to continue his counseling. Without giving away too much of the novel's plot, it is enough to say Philip, as part of his certification process, becomes a new member of Julian's group therapy weekly gathering.

If you have never been part of group therapy, here is your unique opportunity to have the experience. Of course, your experience will be as a reader and not a participant, but, through the magic of the author's novel, you will have the feeling of being an actual member of the group. Not only will you come to know the men and women of the group and how they interact as part of the group, but you will be given the ongoing insights and observations that go through the mind of Julian as he acts as the group's psychotherapist. And the group has a certain energy that is shaken up and lifted with the entrance of Philip. After several sessions with Philip as the new member, the group energy is shaken up yet again with the return of Pam, who has spent a month in India at a meditation retreat.

Back on Philip. As a younger man he was a sex-fiend. That's why Philip was in therapy with Julius. Where psychotherapy with Julius didn't help, the philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer did help, and Philip explains to everyone in the group how and why the philosophy of Schopenhauer worked and how Schopenhauer can help others. This leads the author to intersperse chapters in the novel about the life and philosophy of the great nineteenth century thinker, a thinker who had a profound influence on Sigmund Freud and thus psychology and psychotherapy. Schopenhauer didn't shy away from philosophizing about sexuality and other issues of the body; rather, his insights into nature's urges and energies are at the core of this thinking. Thus, the direct connection between what happens in the development of Schopenhauer's philosophy and what happens in the sessions of the group.

The cancer of the group's beloved friend and leader, Julius, adds a bond and emotional charge to all that happens in the group from week to week. To find out exactly how events unfold, please place an order for the novel today and read the first five pages. You will be hooked. You will want to continue reading and reading, nonstop till the end. Thank you Irvin D. Yalom for writing a fine novel and sharing your experience and wisdom as a group psychotherapist, as well providing a penetrating overview of one of the great philosophers in the Western tradition, who, as it turns out, was foundational in linking philosophy with psychology.

...more

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Sep 20, 2017 BlackOxford rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: american, philosophy-theology

Cancer Cures Neurosis

An episode of the British sci-fi comedy, Red Dwarf, has a disturbing female character with a heavy Germanic accent proclaiming, "Schopenhauer was rrrright: Without pain, life has no meaning. I am about to give your life meaning." This is more or less the central theme of Yalom's novel.

Like Robertson Davies' Manticore, The Schopenhauer Cure follows a series of psycho-analytic therapy sessions, interspersed with background material. But Yalom uses group not individual therapy ...more

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Aug 28, 2020 Ladan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, american-lit, deserves-a-reread, death, philosophy, psychology, drama

And above all there was Zarathustra’s oft-repeated question whether we would be willing to repeat the precise life we have lived again and again throughout eternity.

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Mar 22, 2017 Deea rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Anyone interested in psychoanalysis and philosophy

Shelves: psychology, best-2017, favourites

Relationships are difficult: they can cause frustrations, misunderstandings, self-loathing and a whole range of negative feelings, especially if our own mental formation was biased by hurtful past events, even by traumas that we are not able to acknowledge as such. Human mind is a very powerful tool and most of us don’t have any clue how to understand it and use it to our advantage.

”Imagine an ancient city that built a high wall to protect it from the high torrents of an adjacent river. C

”Imagine an ancient city that built a high wall to protect it from the high torrents of an adjacent river. Centuries later, though the river had long dried up, the city still invested considerable resources in maintaining that wall." (about human-beings and their self-defense systems)

Most of the times we perceive our own actions as the exact expression of our desires. How often is it really so? Sometimes consciousness plays tricks on us and what we perceive as true might only be a mental disguise for something deeply hidden inside our minds. We think people are how we see them: sometimes cruel, not interesting or boring, but we forget that what we see is not what it’s really out there, but a distorted version of reality filtered by our own moods, passions, suffering, ideals (Kant).

Rene Magritte - The Glass House

This book explores how psychoanalysis and group therapy can contribute to the understanding of our actions and torments. It digs for the roots of unhappiness in certain individuals who have problems dealing with their relationships because their controversial actions are empowered by hidden psychological sufferings. The characters can be seen as prototypes of certain psychological afflictions: a beautiful woman whose relations with other people are heavily influenced by her unquenchable thirst to be admired, a woman that cannot get past her rage and destroys all the relationships she has with men, a sexually-addicted person that cannot relate to other human beings etc. and they become aware of their hidden motives only through discussions with the other members of the group during therapy sessions.

These discussions explore both psychological and philosophical realms: Schopenhauer and his views (together with the Buddhist influences on his philosophy) are explored and discussed in order to support certain opinions about behaviors. Together with this, other philosophical views are brought to discussion. The tone is erudite, but also light and entertaining and this makes this book a very enjoyable read. What I liked most about it is that it made me really want to know more about psychology (for which I seem to have quite a passion lately) and about philosophy (because of this book I started reading “A History of Western Philosophy” by Bertrand Russell which I really enjoy) and it made me understand more about my own behavior. ...more

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Sep 09, 2008 Ade Bailey rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

Irvin Yalom, The Schopehahauer Cure

This is a lovely novel. Its apparently ridiculous ending is not so: it is a wink from the other side of the grave, a fatuous and caring slice of the humour by which we warm ourselves against death, perhaps Schopenhauer’s wink and rare shy smile. In fact, it is a brilliantly constructed novel of ideas. It’s theatrical in that most of the action takes place in a group therapy session, one set (with moveable furniture it turns out), and theatrical in its drawing o ...more

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Jul 21, 2008 Wendy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I know a book was good when I miss the characters for a few days after I finish the book.

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Nov 20, 2008 Tiger rated it it was ok · review of another edition

The characters were such unlikable jerks it was difficult to sludge through the stooopid plot ... much much better were the biographical chapters about Herr Schopenhauer's life and times!

And the dialogue! Who talks like that? But I suppose it is likely that people in therapy groups might babble like that. The author is talented but could use a lot more humor and media references to spice up the text. I would have liked to see how Britney Spears changed the group's dynamics for example. Or maybe ...more

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Nov 15, 2008 James Henderson rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: study-group, psychology, philosophical-fiction

This is a novel of ideas by Irvin D. Yalom. Given its' title the publisher decided that it would be useful to add the words "a novel" at the top of the front cover; presumably so that it would not be confused with self-help psychology or philosophy texts.
The "novel" portrays the operation of group therapy under the direction of Julius Hertzfeld, an experienced therapist, at the center of the novel. But it also contains contrasting chapters highlighting the life and thought of Arthur Schopenhauer ...more

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Jan 09, 2012 Jennifer rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Schopenhauer Cure is a book that lives right at the corner of book nerd street and therapy nerd avenue. I gave it 4 stars because, coincidently, I live on that same corner. Irvin Yalom is more or less the reigning Godfather of group therapy and has written extensively in the field, both in educational theory/practice and fictional "teaching novels". A lot of my appreciation for this novel had to do with reading it for class in conjunction with Yalom's text book "Theory and Practice of Group Ther Schopenhauer Cure is a book that lives right at the corner of book nerd street and therapy nerd avenue. I gave it 4 stars because, coincidently, I live on that same corner. Irvin Yalom is more or less the reigning Godfather of group therapy and has written extensively in the field, both in educational theory/practice and fictional "teaching novels". A lot of my appreciation for this novel had to do with reading it for class in conjunction with Yalom's text book "Theory and Practice of Group Therapy". It was interesting to read how his teaching about group is manifest in his fictional account of doing group. Schopenhauer Cure is one of his teaching novels and chronicles the life of a group led by Julius, Yalom's fictional group leader, who finds out he is dying of skin cancer at the beginning of the novel. Julius seeks out a previously unsuccessful client, Phillip Slate, who has become heavily involved in the work of Arthur Schopenhauer, nineteenth century philosopher, schizoid extraordinaire who is apparently responsible for everything depressing nietzsche wrote. The novel switches between chapters about the developing life of the group and a description biography of Schopenhauer. (The final assignment in this class was to write a reflection paper on this novel. One of my classmates said their first sentence would read, "Schopenhauer is miserable fuck. Correction, miserable boring fuck".) This juxtaposition really reinforces the difference between the principles of group therapy (here and now communication, the inherent importance of human relationships) and the principles of Schopenhauer's work (life is a miserable shit show, stay off the grid, avoid the humans, etc). The book's final scene in group was especially well-written and poignant, so much so that I'm pretty sure I even cried a little as I read it. I dont' book cry very much, so chalk one up for Yalom. If you are at all interested in group therapy, this is a great read. If are at all interested in Schopenhauer, this is an okay read. If you're not interested in either of these things, it might be kind of slow-going for you. ...more

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Apr 04, 2015 Nicole rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: underwhelming, meh

"One can never read too little of bad, or too much of good books: bad books are intellectual poison; they destroy the mind."

— Arthur Schopenhauer, 'On Books and Reading', Essays of Schopenhauer

It surprises me that a book with Schopenhauer in the title should leave itself open to such extreme Schopenhauerian criticism. Obviously any novel would fall into a category that was despised in its entirety by Schopenhauer (who lumps together 'political or religious pamphlets, novels, poetry, and the like' as all of the types of books that should be avoided) but I was still surprised at how bad this novel actually turned out to be.

At first I found the premise of the plot quite interesting, the slightly ham-fisted dialogue didn't grate too much, and I was invested in the two main characters, Philip and Julius, both of whom I found intriguing. But as a weekly therapy group became the dominant setting for the plot my interest started to wane. There was a lot of expositional dialogue and excruciating therapy-speak where every single character explained in minute detail the nature and degree of their motivations and feelings about one another. These scenes are bursting with implausibility, even for a group therapy setting, and we are expected to believe that human beings could actually say things to each other like, "Impressive, Stuart" and, "We're not on target, we're missing ... something oblique is going on." There is some of the most painful dialogue I've ever read:

"Plato," Philip interjected, "observed that love is in the one who loves, not in the one who is loved."
"Love is in the one who loves not in the one who is loved—That's a great quote, Philip," Rebecca said, flashing a smile. "You see, that's what I like about you. Comments just like that. They open my eyes. I find you interesting. Attractive, too."

(Chapter 19)

My other huge problem with this book was that there was hardly any Schopenhauer (not including the biographical chapters) and the only time we really hear his voice is in the epigraphs or when Philip is regurgitating quotes. Philip is supposed to be an embodiment of both Schopenhauer's ideas and temperament, but I think he ranks too highly on the emotionless psychopath scale and too low on the erudite curmudgeon scale. He's also endowed with an infuriatingly robotic two-dimensionality. Essentially he was nothing but a mouthpiece for the occasional aphorism or quote.

The biographical chapters about Schopenhauer were really interesting though, so after I gave up on this novel at around the 50% mark I skipped all the other chapters in favour of these.

In short, I should have just read some Schopenhauer or a biography of Schopenhauer instead of being lazy and turning to a crappy novel.

"It is the same in literature as in life. Wherever one goes one immediately comes upon the incorrigible mob of humanity. It exists everywhere in legions; crowding, soiling everything, like flies in summer. Hence the numberless bad books, those rank weeds of literature which extract nourishment from the corn and choke it ... In order to read what is good one must make it a condition never to read what is bad; for life is short, and both time and strength limited."

— Arthur Schopenhauer, 'On Books and Reading', Essays of Schopenhauer

...more

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Apr 14, 2018 Kaya rated it really liked it · review of another edition

“It's not ideas, nor vision, nor tools that truly matter in therapy. If you debrief patients at the end of therapy about the process, what do they remember? Never the ideas—it's always the relationship.”

Yalom has such flow and ease in his writing that the the reader just flies through the pages. The plot is straightforward and Yalom has a strong voice and opinions and so do his characters. Everything and everyone have a purpose. The sessions were surprisingly fun to read despite the severe t “It's not ideas, nor vision, nor tools that truly matter in therapy. If you debrief patients at the end of therapy about the process, what do they remember? Never the ideas—it's always the relationship.”

Yalom has such flow and ease in his writing that the the reader just flies through the pages. The plot is straightforward and Yalom has a strong voice and opinions and so do his characters. Everything and everyone have a purpose. The sessions were surprisingly fun to read despite the severe topics they were covering.

The novel opens with Julius, a 65 year old psychotherapist having been diagnosed with cancer and given a year of good health. He reviews his career which leads him to contacting an old patient Philip who terminated the treatment because Julius couldn’t help him. Subsequently, Philip joins Julius’s therapy group and that’s when the real fun starts.

This novel teaches us about the dynamics of group psychotherapy and the philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer. It explores how psychoanalysis and group therapy can contribute to the understanding of our actions and torments and help us heal. It digs to the roots of destructive feelings and controversial actions empowered by hidden psychological sufferings, all through the eyes of well developed characters with relatable struggles. The reader has a feeling of actually being a member of the group. The group dynamic intensifies when Philip joins, someone who’s convinced that a primary source of pain is attachment to human relationships, which provokes interesting insights and conclusions by all members of the group. The ending is more than satisfying.

“And what is the most terrible thing about boredom? Why do we rush to dispel it? Because it is a distraction-free state which soon enough reveals underlying unpalatable truths about existence—our insignificance, our meaningless existence, our inexorable progression to deterioration and death.”

The author truly challenges the reader with precise parts of Schopenhauer's life and thoughts he chooses to share and insights from Julius's group therapy. Without aiming to actually convince the reader into his beliefs, he simply makes you question certain grey areas or to finally form an opinion about other areas. ...more

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Jan 30, 2018 Sarah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2018

“Live right, he reminded himself, and have faith that good things will flow from you even if you never learn of them.”

This is the second book I've read by Yalom,
the first one being When Nietzsche Wept.

The two books actually have a lot in common, especially regarding the characters and their development. They both start with a philosopher, who shows few to none emotions and undergoes some kind of therapy by a lovable and gentle psychotherapist, who at the end succeeds turning the lonely and dist ...more

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Jul 03, 2017 نیلوفر رحمانیان rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: philosophy, psychoanalytical, 2017-read

Yalom himself is afraid of death, that became obvious to me the first moment i finished his "creatures of a day". I mean that can be the reason why he became an existentialist psychotherapist in the first place, right? And that i share with him. Im so afraid of death myself even though im 60 years younger than him that even the thought can paralyze me. But something interesting happened in thic book. He started the book by diagnosing cancer, an un curable melanoma to be precise, and gave me the ...more

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Nov 29, 2019 Paras2 rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Okay so this book was alright. It did make me read incessantly for like 4 days and it kinda pushed me back into the reading for pleasure thingy, since i was out of it because of university materials i really needed this push.
But in all honesty, the whole thing wasn't really amazing as the other book by Yalom. I mean for When Nietzsche Wept , i cried and saw my soul in it. But here, it was Schopenhauer, which i really really dislike and in this matter I'm very much like Pam in the book. I detest ...more

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Jan 09, 2009 A Reader rated it really liked it · review of another edition

“Would you wiling to repeat the precise life you have lived again and again throughout eternity?”

Being confronted with cancer and his own death the psychotherapist Julius Hertzferd, try to re-examine his life and work. For reasons that he cannot clearly understands he seeks out Philip Slate, a sex-addict and old patient, which he failed to help. Philip, now a doctor of philosophy, claims to have been cured with the help of the philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer. He says that he wants to be a philos “Would you wiling to repeat the precise life you have lived again and again throughout eternity?”

Being confronted with cancer and his own death the psychotherapist Julius Hertzferd, try to re-examine his life and work. For reasons that he cannot clearly understands he seeks out Philip Slate, a sex-addict and old patient, which he failed to help. Philip, now a doctor of philosophy, claims to have been cured with the help of the philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer. He says that he wants to be a philosophical therapist, and asks Julius to tutor him. Philip’s misanthropic stance poses a challenge to Julius and he invites him to join his therapy group for six months in exchange for his tutoring in counselling.

The group’s therapy sessions illustrate the interpersonal dynamics and the problems in human relations. Sexuality, betrayal, fear of aging, forgiveness, self-delusion and morality, powerful emotions and feelings, separate and connect the members of the group, shape their characters and their relations.

Through Philip, philosophy and especially Schopenhauer’s ideas are developing throughout the book. His life and philosophy are intertwined in a brilliant way with the group’s interpersonal relations, the unrevealing of their secrets and deepest emotions.

Irvin Yalom very cleverly, allows his characters to be developed in a gradual way; the process of exposure is slow, sometimes very painful and heavily emotional. Reading the book, I caught myself being attached to some of the characters, especially to untouchable Philip. His persistence to preciseness and speech intelligibility, his cleverness and self-possession in contrast to his lack of empathy and interpersonal skills - I wouldn’t say misanthropism – form an enticing and seemingly strong personality. Only, when his secret is revealed, the flaws in his philosophical armour exposed him to his real self, a man full of rage, shocking lonely, a man that no one has ever loved him.

In a truthful and powerful manner, Yalom, who has had a long involvement with therapy groups, show that emotional accessibility is the key to build bonds and organise attachment behaviour with others. It is a great reading. ...more

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Nov 26, 2014 Jafar rated it liked it · review of another edition

Not very good as a novel -- the ending was especially weak and forced. This book would have been better as a non-fiction. There's a running biography of Schopenhauer and a character who claims that he's used Schopenhauer's philosophy to cure himself where therapy failed him. The merging of the two is not very convincing. However, I did enjoy reading the sections about group therapy, which Yalom must have drawn from his years of experience as a therapist. If you're curious to know what group ther ...more

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Jan 22, 2009 Barnaby Thieme rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, hated

This dreadful, pretentious book is the quintessential vanity project. Its hero, an undisguised version of the author, is a powerful, wise, and beloved therapist who embodies and understands the only possible point of view allowed into the novel's claustrophobic universe. Yalom should have stuck to his magnificent theoretical writings and left art to the artists. This is a dismal failure and one of the worst books I've read in many years. ...more

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Sep 22, 2018 Florentina rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

The sort of book that reminded me why I love reading. It opened up so many trains of thoughts and when I finished it, I felt like I have a 1% better understanding on people and human relationships in general. It’s truly outstanding how Yalom manages to not get preachy while teaching you so many things.

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Jan 02, 2016 Hamed rated it really liked it · review of another edition

"Mankind has learned a few things from me which it will never forget."

The contents are very amazing, but the story could be much stronger. ...more

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Feb 13, 2019 Ati rated it liked it · review of another edition

Out of Yalom's books I have read so far, this one was the least interesting for me specially that I read it after "becoming Myself". Yalom nicely integrates Schopenhauer's philosophy and therapy in this book, through a not so well plotted story. There are a lot of life lessons in the book. ...more

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Oct 31, 2018 Michael Shore rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

A masterful blend of Schopenhauer’s life and ideas, and the dynamics of group therapy.

Yalom brilliantly weaves nuanced and deeply relatable characters, fantastic multi-character dialog (which makes up the bulk of the book), and deep philosophical exploration into a hard-to-put-down package.

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Mar 31, 2019 Andrew “The Weirdling” Glos rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019

This was - on the whole - an excellent book. It serves both as a good introduction to the thought of Arthur Schopenhauer for the lay person and an interesting exploration of various personality types in group therapy with one another.

All the action for the novel takes places (with very few and short exceptions) during the group sessions of a therapist who has just been diagnosed with terminal cancer. These are his last session with his favorite group. And, taking stock of his life, he chooses t ...more

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Jul 21, 2018 Don rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: mental-health

Pure magic. The Schopenhauer Cure can serve as a textbook for a group therapy class (or at least an extended case study to be read along with an actual textbook), but it's an absorbing novel in its own right. The book's action primarily takes place in a counseling office, with the characters working out their problems in a psychotherapy group. This might sound like a recipe for a dull read, but as Julius Hertzfeld, the book's therapist and primary protagonist, points out, students required to ob ...more

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Mar 04, 2018 robin friedman rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Philosophical Therapy

Irvin Yalom has had a multi-faceted career as a practicing psychotherapist, as a leading writer of texts on group therapy, and as a novelist. Yalom also had a deeply-based interest in philosophy. His novel "The Schopenhauer Cure" attempts to integrate fundamental human concerns, the search for love, for meaning in life, and for a way to accept death, with a novelistic portrayal of group therapy. It does so through a portrayal of Schopenhauer, among other philosophers. The bo Philosophical Therapy

Irvin Yalom has had a multi-faceted career as a practicing psychotherapist, as a leading writer of texts on group therapy, and as a novelist. Yalom also had a deeply-based interest in philosophy. His novel "The Schopenhauer Cure" attempts to integrate fundamental human concerns, the search for love, for meaning in life, and for a way to accept death, with a novelistic portrayal of group therapy. It does so through a portrayal of Schopenhauer, among other philosophers. The book does not entirely succeed -- it is somewhat awkwardly written and the characterizations leave a good deal to be desired -- but it is thought-provoking and absorbing.

The story is set in San Francisco. The main character of the book is a famous psychiatrist, Julius, who learns that he has a fatal cancer. He considers how to spend his remaining time of health and, out of the blue, contacts Philip, a patient he had treated many years earlier, apparently unsuccessfully, for compulsive sexual behavior. Philip has in the intervening years given up his former career as a chemist, earned a PhD in philosophy and seeks to become a counselor. Philip has cured his sexual addiction by a study of the Nineteenth Century philosopher of pessimism, Arthur Schopenhauer. Like his mentor, Schopenhauer, Philip is arrogant, aloof, and brilliant. He agrees to become a participant in a therapy group lead by Julius in exchange for Julius's help in meeting the requirements for a counseling license.

We meet a variety of characters in Julius's group: the blue collar worker Tony, (the most appealing character in the book, in my view) the beautiful Rebecca, a lawyer concerned with the fading of her appearance, the reserved pediatrician Stuart, the librarian Bonnie, unhappy with her plainness, the English professor Pam, who has had numerous relationships in and outside marriage, all of them unsatisfactory, and the unhappily married and alcoholic Gill. The group is intrigued by Philip as the newcomer, by his detachment and his anti-sociability. But the members of the group are fascinated by Philip's insights and by his discussions of Schopenhauer's philosophy as a means of approaching the difficulties which plague them and which drive them to therapy. Sexual and relationship issues play a dominant role for each of the participants in the group and for Julius himself.

Gradually, Philip comes to open up and to find a peace with himself, Julius learns to come to terms with his impending death, and the members of the group make varied degrees of progress with themselves.

The chapters dealing with Julius and the group alternate with chapters discussing Schopenhauer's philosophy and life. Schopenhauer was an unattractive individual indeed but he has much to teach. The values of a life of the mind, together with its limitations are brought out well in the novel and compensate for some of the wordy therapy scenes and the insufficient development of some of the characters.

In addition to Schopenhauer, the book considers the works of other philosophers at key points and compares and contrasts them to Schopenhauer. Yalom shows a good ability to get at the heart of the teachings of these philosophers for purposes of his story. They include, particularly, Nietzsche, the stoic philosopher, Epictetus, and Aristotle. Thomas Mann's Schopenhauer-influenced novel "Buddenbrooks" also plays a substantial role in the discussion. As might be expected in a book dealing with Schopenhauer, there is a great deal of discussion of Buddhism and the growth of interest in the United States in the Buddha. In fact Pam, one of the major characters, spends ten days in India at a retreat given by the famous teacher Goenka, and subsequently joins a Buddhist church.

I found the religious and philosophical themes of this book helpful in a book meditating on death and on human sexuality. Julius, born Jewish, is an atheist and a skeptic. The other participants in the groups are, likewise, either secular in their religious orientation or tinged with an attraction to Buddhism. This combination of American secularism and Buddhism I have found appealing in recent years, and I felt validated, in a sense, by seeing this particular way of viewing oneself in the book. But I found myself curious, at several points, about what practicing Jews or Christians would say about this book and how they might respond to the dismissive attitude of the author and the protagonists of the story towards their theism.

This book works better as a study of philosophy and of the value of reflection than it does as a novel or as a portrayal of character. But I found it worthwhile.

Robin Friedman ...more

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Feb 04, 2019 Aryeh rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This is the first novel I've read about group therapy, yet I am confident I will not read a better one.
Yalom is a new favorite. ...more

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Jul 30, 2012 Dajana J. rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: adult

Whenever I love a book way to much or when a book leaves me with such great love about it, I'm too overwhelmed to organize my thoughts and I just start of saying "I can't find the words to tell you how much I love this book!" and that is true, really. But today I have so many things to say that I'm afraid my very simple words won't even get close to describe and tell you how much this book means to me. I'm sure saying "I love this book" won't be strong enough or big enough or anywhere close to w Whenever I love a book way to much or when a book leaves me with such great love about it, I'm too overwhelmed to organize my thoughts and I just start of saying "I can't find the words to tell you how much I love this book!" and that is true, really. But today I have so many things to say that I'm afraid my very simple words won't even get close to describe and tell you how much this book means to me. I'm sure saying "I love this book" won't be strong enough or big enough or anywhere close to what I feel for this novel. I don't know if you've ever read a book that has changed your way of thinking, your point of view of life and I hadn't , not until now. Not until I read The Schopenhauer Cure. This book is exactly that kind of book for me. It has changed so many aspects of my personality and the way I see life,people and even myself. My literature teacher always used to mention this through all my freshmen year and when I told her I had bought it, what she said was "Be careful with it. You'd probably want to wait a little and read it a bit later." Probably she was right, probably I should have read it later, probably I've missed some things and not fully understood some others, but frankly, despite all that, for all I understood I can undoubtedly say this book gave me an opportunity to see my life and myself from a third person's aspect. It made me understand so much about myself and after 384 pages of it, I just had a feeling that I was changed. Like I was a new person with a new perspective, and let me tell you that ; there's no better feeling than that.

All of that may sound very dramatic and very unrealistic for a book, but if you've ever come across any book like that, you will know what I mean. This is the first philosophical book I read and I honestly don't know what I was waiting. I got to learn a lot from this book. I liked how it was written and all the group therapy sessions were like my own therapy. Reading about so many different lives of yours and how ideas of people become one whole even though so different from one another were such a great experience. And all the characters were built in such a different way from each other and each of them represented pieces of ourselves.

Julius Hertzfeld has to deal with his death. He's only given one year to live and he has to decide what he is going to do with his life that year. Tough decision. What you would do with your life if you were only left one year to live ? Julius decides to do what he loves the most; be a therapist. Help people, listen to them and love them. Julius (his therapy group) confrontation with Philip is just what makes the whole book. Philip lives by Schopenhauer ideas -- a great philosopher who has a great hate about life and humans. It's very difficult to summarize Schopenhauer ideas and beliefs in some sentences because he spent his whole life writing them but basically he was a man who tried to avoid humans and thought that he was one of those rare people who came in our world to show us his talent and knowledge. I have to confess I did support some of Schopenhauer's ideas but sometimes his words just gave me the goosebumps. They were horrific and to think that a man can hold such negative feelings and ideas within was even more terrible. Philip is - let's say - the living version of Schopenhauer. Irivin Yalom (representing himself through Julius) brings Schopenhauer (Philip) in a group therapy.

I liked how there was no good or bad, because every idea was a way of how different people see life. I liked how with the passing of time Philip finally started expressing his feelings with his own words and not quoting other great philosophers. I liked how other people learned some things from him, too. I love how this book travels though people's souls and discover their feelings. It shows how people can change and that second chances are not always wasted. It was amazing how it was all built in a give-and-take relationship. This book is definitely (for me) one of those I rarely get to read and it will definitely remain in my mind for a long, long time. ...more

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Nov 28, 2012 Miguel Teles rated it it was ok · review of another edition

It was a good idea but was poorly developed.

I like Schopenhauer, had some tiny notions of his main philosophy and had some tiny notions about his difficult character and biography. That was one of the reasons why this book attracted me. On the other hand, all the subject of psychoanalysis and the idea of philosophical therapy also was quite interesting to me, and made me give it a chance. Disillusion is the final sentiment, but I’ll give you the bad and then the good things about the general re It was a good idea but was poorly developed.

I like Schopenhauer, had some tiny notions of his main philosophy and had some tiny notions about his difficult character and biography. That was one of the reasons why this book attracted me. On the other hand, all the subject of psychoanalysis and the idea of philosophical therapy also was quite interesting to me, and made me give it a chance. Disillusion is the final sentiment, but I’ll give you the bad and then the good things about the general reading:

- The poor character development is one of the main problems here. Being the narrative in a therapy group it had a lot of characters, each with its own problem, but, the problems were quite boring and too superficial, or too simplistic, and then, each of the problems were so underdeveloped that in the end it was just a confusing mix of several disabled characters and you couldn't quite grasp or make a connection with any of them.

- Julius, the main character (the therapist) was an annoying omniscient creature since he always seemed to know what was going around in other people’s heads, never doubting his psychological theories as possibly incorrect or insufficient, and always predicting what would be other's reaction; i.e., like the perfect and inhuman archetype of an ultimate and godlike therapist/psychologist.

- The author, much like Julius I would say, tries to psychoanalyze Schopenhauer, he forces his biography (since the good man is dead) into his therapy room, and based only on other's biographies and Schopenhauer's personal notes (which I think are quite insufficient) draws a theory on his behaviour and even on his philosophy.

- The same author had the annoying habit of over explaining some events of the narrative or literally recounting them, underrating his readers' memory and intelligence.

- The whole evolution of Phillip from cold-minded and antisocial retracted person to a capable counsellor full of warm and interpersonal abilities was too artificial, rushed-of in the final pages of the book, and poorly accompanied psychologically.

But it had good things too:

- It's philosophical thematic was a good insight on Schopenhauer's philosophy, and also the best chapters were the ones of his life (despite him being psychoanalysed). It made me more interested in Schopenhauer and in other philosophers that showed up throughout the novel.

- Pam's Buddhist retreat chapter was also a good one, which showed one side of Buddhism, its asceptic denying and detaching of life, and I agreed with Pam's opinions about it.

- And finally, the final message of the book, though clumsy and underachieved was a good one.
...more

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Mar 07, 2008 Christy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

I absolutely adore Irvin Yalom. He manages to mix philosophical contemplation with psychological analysis while narrating a fantastic story that was actually almost a tear-jerker in the end. This book is absolutely perfect.

As for the plot, a former sex offender claims to have cured himself on the philosophies of Schopenhauer, although his skeptical therapist is unconvinced, offering to swap his own group therapy for a consideration of this magical cure.

There's nothing I could change or criticize ...more

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Aug 01, 2014 Merima Maja rated it it was ok · review of another edition

The characters were pretentious, and the plot almost non existent. Instead it screamed: look how much I know about Schopenhauer and European philosophy!! When I wasn't annoyed with the pretentious characters and random Schopenhauer references which were just an excuse to write a history about Schopenhauer, i was utterly bored. ...more

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About Irvin D. Yalom

Irvin D. Yalom

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Irvin David Yalom, M.D., is an author of fiction and nonfiction, Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry at Stanford University, an existentialist, and accomplished psychotherapist.

Books by Irvin D. Yalom

Love's Executioner and Other Tales of Psychotherapy

The Gift of Therapy: An Open Letter to a New Generation of Therapists and Their Patients

The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy

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Quotes from علاج شوبنهاور

“Life is a miserable thing. I have decided to spend my life thinking about it.” — 118 likes

“Religion has everything on its side: revelation, prophecies, government protection, the highest dignity and eminence. . . and more than this, the invaluable prerogative of being allowed to imprint its doctrines on the mind at a tender age of childhood, whereby they become almost innate ideas.” — 57 likes

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